Northrop Grumman / Bell MQ-8 (Fire-X)

History of Northrop Grumman/Bell MQ-8 (Fire-X)

The Fire-X is a full-fledged unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) jointly developed by Northrop Grumman and Bell Helicopter. The vehicle is based on a heavily modified airframe of the Bell 407 utility helicopter.

The original Bell 407 was introduced in 1996, and by 2011 production had exceeded 1,000 units. As such, the Fire-X development retained most of the basic Bell 407 layout, including its four-blade main rotor and two-blade tail rotor configuration.

Essentially, the aircraft is a Bell 407, but with a canopy that accommodates the required avionics (which is based on the MQ-8B fire reconnaissance drone). The landing gear was still a simple two-point carriage arrangement, the engine was mounted in the upper part of the top of the fuselage, and the shaft drove the tail rotor through the tail shaft.

The first flight of the Fire-X was recorded on December 20, 2010.

Unlike other traditional, well-known fixed-wing drones such as the Predator, the Fire-X belongs to a growing class of drones with vertically aligned, "helicopter-like" characteristics that allow the vehicle to fly - Launches and landings come from tight spaces, such as the flight decks of ocean-going ships moored in space. The Fire-X's intended role is to resupply U.S.

Navy ships at sea.

The Fire-X is being developed alongside the smaller Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout for acquisition by the US Navy. However, the Fire Scout uses a Swiss three-person S-333 series light helicopter, of course, with appropriate modifications for the role of the drone. Instead, the Fire-X represents a larger, more capable unmanned alternative, offering twice the range of the Fire Scout and up to three times the payload capacity. The Fire-X has proven itself through rigorous and extensive testing at the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, where approximately 250 flights have been recorded.

The system has been tested through autonomous action, take-off and landing operations, and various payload configurations of external and internal nature. Test altitudes are all limited to below 20,000 feet, although this is also in line with the service cap of the original Bell 407 series.

Performance figures developed by the Fire-X include a 24-hour flight endurance window and payload carrying capacity of up to 1,000 pounds through the use of internal cargo bays or external sling methods.

Dubbed "Fire-X," the aircraft is intended to be a proof-of-concept demonstration vehicle that will be developed for the U.S. Navy in production-grade "MQ-8C" form (if all goes to plan).

At the time of this writing (2013), the Fire-X will be handed over to the US Navy from Naval Air Station Point Mugu in the coming months for formal evaluation as part of the "MQ-8C Fire Scout Endurance Upgrade Program". year 2013. california. The program also evaluates the Boeing A160T Hummingbird and Lockheed/Kaman K-Max unmanned vertical systems.

It is believed that the official MQ-8C could reach operational status with the US Navy sometime in 2014, when six low-speed production vehicles are completed. The U.S. Navy intends to procure as many as 28 MQ-8C prototypes over three years.

The Fire X/MQ-8C will eventually be equipped with rocket pods or missiles (including Raytheon's Griffin mini-rocket) to play a more active role on the battlefield, which is not beyond the scope of the project.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes